2026-01-06 17:26:45

Following the previous discussion on why Ethereum must take the ZK route, a question is often raised: if the Ethereum official team directly deploys ZK-EVM on the mainnet, do other ZK project teams still have a way out?

The answer is yes. There is a key understanding here — zero-knowledge proofs are one of the most complex engineering feats in the field of cryptography, comparable in difficulty to fully homomorphic encryption(FHE). It requires a large number of top cryptography experts to continuously push forward.

Although Ethereum has abundant resources, it cannot monopolize all ZK technology routes. The market is large enough to accommodate multiple parallel technical solutions. Different teams explore various aspects such as cryptography, performance trade-offs, and application scenarios. Some innovations may even be adopted by the main chain in the end. Therefore, independent ZK R&D teams still have significant value at this stage.

ETH-0,56%

ZK-1,61%

FHE2,01%

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ColdWalletGuardian

· 01-09 17:18

This logic isn't wrong, but to be honest, cryptography talent is so scarce. If Ethereum really throws money at it, who can handle it? Ultimately, it's about execution and innovative ideas. Don't be too optimistic. Multiple routes sound great, but how many will survive in the end? Whoever develops a production-level application for the ZK space first will win. No matter how good the technical route is, if no one uses it, it's useless. The way out for independent teams still depends on whether they can find a differentiated selling point; otherwise, they'll just be waiting to be integrated.

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NFTDreamer

· 01-09 15:11

Haha, really, a bunch of people just like to create anxiety by saying small projects have no future. Actually, the ZK space is a cake that can't be eaten all at once. Speaking of which, cryptography is indeed a minefield; without top-tier talent, it's impossible to develop. Ethereum, no matter how wealthy, still relies on talent. I feel this is the true moat for independent teams. Diversifying technical routes is the long-term strategy. That's about it. Anyway, don't listen to those pessimistic voices; as long as the market is big enough, there is no absolute monopoly.

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GasWrangler

· 01-08 20:19

honestly if you actually analyze the cryptographic complexity here, ethereum deploying zk-evm doesn't kill the competition—it just filters out the sub-optimal projects, which is fine

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fren_with_benefits

· 01-06 17:56

Haha, Ethereum can't monopolize the field of cryptography either; the ecosystem is the real key.

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GateUser-26d7f434

· 01-06 17:55

Wow, this logic is still quite reasonable. Cryptography isn't something you can just throw money at to solve; it requires real talent... So the ZK track won't be taken over so quickly.

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SatoshiLeftOnRead

· 01-06 17:39

Well, the logic is fine, but the ZK space is too complex; even Vitalik can't fully grasp all the routes.

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StealthDeployer

· 01-06 17:28

Alright, actually this logic holds up... ZK stuff is really complex, and no matter how much money Ethereum has, it can't handle all the routes.

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